“The will to succeed is important, but what’s more important is the will to prepare.”- Bobby Knight
As the summertime comes to a close, the summer interns also head out for the year. These temporary colleagues are most likely to return to college or seek new opportunities upon internship completion. For these future job seekers, internships are imperative to achieving real world, hands-on experience before officially entering the workplace.
Interns are also a valuable asset to a business, and take on a number of responsibilities and projects that others are unable to do. This is not to say that interns are responsible for the “dirty work” – rather they take on short-term projects, or unique tasks that haven’t been able to be completed for whatever reason. As a result, managers may begin to feel stressed and overwhelmed as the interns’ presence starts to fade out come September.
So, how should businesses adjust when interns complete their internships? I have covered this topic before because I think it’s important to discuss whenever the end of summer is near.
Take a look at the 3 Ways to Maintain Business After Summer Internships End below.
1. Distribute Additional Work to Colleagues Evenly
There’s no doubt that interns have a positive impact on a business. So when these internships end, a company may struggle with the pressure of extra work or the stress of a lighter team. Instead of scrambling around to assign the additional tasks and projects, it may be easier to plan ahead and distribute this additional work evenly between several team members. You can also give the duties back to whomever was responsible for them before the internships started. The work that interns typically handle is not highly advanced, so it should be easy for everyone to pitch in.
2. Acquire Contract or Temp-to-Hire Professionals
After internships end, managers may realize that there’s a need for additional temporary positions on the team in order to complete more unique projects. There’s always value in hiring temporary professionals or contract-to-hire individuals, especially when there isn’t a necessity for another full-time employee. Even if a business is considering a permanent addition, utilizing a temporary role can give managers a chance to temporarily evaluate an individual’s skillsets, and help assure that they are a right cultural fit for the team!
3. Consider Hiring New Colleagues
As a company is rapidly growing, it’s important to take a step back and recall the overall vision and goals of the business. Try to understand the company’s needs and devise a plan before offering internship opportunities. Through this strategy it will be easier to determine whether the company should seek new permanent employees, or even offer permanent positions to individuals upon internship completion.
Need help finding temporary talent? Contact Brilliant at 312.582.1800 or email info@brilliantfs.com and mention this blog.
These are only a few of the ways for companies to maintain business after summer internships end. Do you have other suggestions? Comment below and let us know!